Volkswagen's Return To European Debt Markets Met With Warm Reception

Volkswagen AG's return to European debt markets has been met with a warm reception from investors, who're rushing to participate in Thursday's expected 7.5 billion euro ($8.1 billion) bond offering, according to a report from the Financial Times. The bond had attracted 22 billion euros ($23.8 billion) in bids by mid-morning, London Time, the FT reported, with debt being sold in four tranches with maturities from two to 10 years. The German automaker was once one of the largest bond issuers in Europe, but it hasn't sold a benchmark bond denominated in a G-10 currency since August 2015. In January, the company agreed to pay $4.3 billion in criminal and civil fines and pleaded guilty to three criminal felony counts. These fines brought the automakers' total scandal-related costs in the U.S. to $20 billion. The company's U.S.-traded shares were off 1.3% at $29.92 in Thursday trade.